Child custody arrangements can be as unique as those entering them. When parents in California divorce, they will need to make decisions on visitation — that is, how each of them will spend time with their child. The following are three types of visitation orders Riverside parents going through a divorce may want to consider.
Scheduled visitation
Through scheduled visitation, the child will spend set, specific dates and holidays with each parent. For example, the noncustodial parent may have the child every-other weekend and one weeknight per week, while the custodial parent will have the child in their care the rest of the time. Scheduled visitation has the advantage of being predictable, which could reduce conflict, and it provides stability to a child during an uncertain time. However, problems could arise if a parent fails to abide by a scheduled visitation order.
Reasonable visitation
Reasonable visitation may be an option for parents who are on good terms with one another or parents whose work schedules vary or are unpredictable. Through reasonable visitation there will not be set dates that each parent will have the child in their care. Instead, a reasonable visitation order is left open-ended, and the parents work out between them when they will have the child in their care. However, reasonable visitation generally only is a viable option for parents who can cooperate and communicate effectively.
Supervised visitation
Sometimes a parent needs to be supervised when with the child for safety reasons, or the child and noncustodial parent have been estranged for a long time and need time to get to know one another. When this happens, it may be best for both the parent and the child to have supervised visitation. The person supervising can be another adult, the custodial parent or a professional agency. Sometimes supervised visitation is limited in nature, while other times it is permanent.
Learn more about child custody and visitation
Child custody can be one of the most hotly contested issues in a divorce. Naturally, each parent wants to spend as much time with their child as possible. For this reason, there are a variety of ways visitation can be scheduled to meet the needs of both the parents and the child. This post is for educational purposes only and does not contain legal advice. Our firm’s webpage on child custody may be of interest to those who want to learn more about this topic.